Large capacity magazine for firearms



Sept. 7, 1965 J. G. ROCHA LARGE CAPACITY MAGAZINE FOR FIREARM S Filed Feb. 3, 1964 u R mw OD N In A m United States Patent LARGE CAPACITY MAGAZINE FOR FIREARMS John G. Rocha, Westfield, Mass., assignor to the United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Army Filed Feb. 3, 1964, Ser. No. 342,317 2 Claims. (Cl. 4250) (Granted under Title 35, US. Code (1952), see. 266) The invention described herein may be manufactured and used by or for the Government for governmental purposes without the payment to me of any royalty thereon.

This invention relates to firearms and pertains more particularly to magazines for storing cartridges and delivering them successively to the firearm firing mechanism.

It is one object of this invention to provide a box-type magazine in which the cartridge capacity is increased considerably over the box-type magazine by increasing the width thereof to several times the diameter of the cartridge but without increasing the profile.

It is a further object of this invention to provide such a magazine in which the cartridges may be loaded randomwise therein and which does not require separating partitions.

It is a still further object of this invention to provide a box-type magazine in which the cartridges are successively displaced to a feeding position in the mouth of the magazine by an elastic band.

The pecific nature of the invention as well as other objects and advantages thereof will clearly appear from a description of a preferred embodiment as shown in the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a transversely sectioned view of the magazine taken just forwardly of the rear end thereof showing the last round located by the follower in the feeding position;

FIG. 2 is a view similar to FIG. 1 but showing the magazine filled with cartridges;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view taken along line 3-3 of FIG. 1 but with the last cartridge removed; and

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary view taken along line 4-4 of FIG. 3.

Shown in the figures is a magazine 12 with a case 14 of boxlike configuration. The sides of case 14 include upper sections 16 which extend integrally upwardly and inwardly from the lower sections to form a mouth 18 for passage of cartridges 20 therethrough. A pair of similar guide plates 22 are fixed to upper sections 16 so as to depend vertically therefrom on opposite sides of mouth 18 to form a throat 24. Guide plates 22 are spaced so that two cartridges 20 can pass through throat 24 only in staggered relationship and are spaced from the edges of mouth 18 so that the sides of upper sections 16 on opposite sides thereof form a pair of lips 26 which function similarly to the lips of a conventional double stack magazine in locating the leading cartridge 20 in throat 24 in feeding osition in cooperation with a follower 28.

Follower 28 is pivotally mounted at the left end in case 14 by means of a longitudinally disposed pin 29 journaled therein on the left side of throat 24 so that the follower may be swung upwardly, as hereinafter described, to contact the bottom sides of the guide plates 22 as shown in FIG. 1. Follower 28 is provided on one side, in conventional fashion, with a longitudinally disposed semi-cylindrical hump 30 which, as shown in FIG. 1, acts in cooperation with the one of the lips 26 on the opposite side of mouth 18 to locate the last cartridge 20 in feeding position.

An elastic band 32 is bonded at one end to the underside of follower 28 and the opposite end is bonded to a pin 34 which extends through case 14 at the lower left corner thereof. Band 32 is guided along the bottom of case 14 3,204,361 Patented Sept. 7, 1965 through the cooperation of a guide roller 36 mounted on a shaft 38 which extends longitudinally through case 1.4 at the lower right corner thereof and is guided upwardly along the lower section of the right side through the cooperation of another guide roller 36 and shaft 38 l0ngi tudinally mounted at the junction of the lower section with the related upper section 16 in the right side of the case. A roller 40 journaled on a shaft 42 is located so as to guide band 32 along the upper section 16 of the right side of case 14 to a position where the preloaded tension of the band will bias follower 28 to the upper position thereof in contact with the lower ends of guide plates 22 when only one cartridge 20 remains in magazine 12.

Magazine 12 is loaded by inserting cartridges 20 through mouth 18 into case 14. The first cartridges 20 swing follower 28 downwardly and then, as more cartridges are inserted, the section of band 32 between the follower and roller 40 is elastically elongated to form a loop 44 which is enlarged as the cartridges are added to fill case 14 as seen in FIG. 2. The length of band 32 is arranged so that, when case 14 is fully loaded, the band is stretched to approximately twice its contracted length, when magazine 12 is empty, to form the loo-p 44. Rollers 36 and 40 permit elastic elongation of band 32 along the entire length thereof.

The elastic force applied by band 32 to cartridges 20 in magazine 12 forces the cartridges successively upward to the feeding position in throat 24. Any log jams are cleared by Weapon recoil thrust with attendant vibration of magazine 12 and cartridges 20 therein.

From the foregoing, it is clearly apparent that magazine 12 will hold a large number of cartridges 24) without increasing its silhouette and this is accomplished by increasing the width of the magazine, stacking the cartridges in random relationshi without the need for guiding partitions, and by eliminating the need of a follower and coop crating spring, which are located under the stack of cartridges in conventional magazines, so that the full length of the magazine is used for storing cartridges.

It is also apparent that the magazine i simple is design with few parts, rugged in construction and positive in operation.

Although a particular embodiment of the invention has been described in detail herein, it is evident that many variations may be devised within the spirit and scope there of and the following claims are intended to include such variations.

I claim:

1. A firearm magazine for storing a plurality of cartridges in random fashion including a case having a width several times greater than the diameter of the cartridges, a pair of upper sections extending inwardly and upwardly from opposite sides of said case, a mouth formed between the free ends of said upper sections, a guide late fixed to each of said upper sections to depend vertically therefrom within said case on opposite sides of said mouth, a throat formed between said guide plates for passage of two of the cartridges in staggered relationshi therethrough, a lip formed on each of said upper section between the related one of said guide plates and said mouth for retaining contact by a related one of the two staggered cartridges in said throat to releasably hold the contacted cartridge in a feeding position at said mouth, an elastic band stretched around the inside of said case to form an elastically contractab-le loop around the cartridge therein for pressing the cartridges through said throat to the feeding position, a follower pivotally mounted at one end to said case on one side of said throat for pivotal displacement against said guide plates to displace the last one of the cartridges in the magazine to the feeding position and hold such last one of the cartridges therein, said elastic band being fixed at one end to said follower and at the opposite end to said 3 4 case, and rollers positioned in said case for cooperation tridges in the magazine to the feeding position and resilwith said elastic band to form said contractable loop, to iently hold such last cartridge therein. ivot said follower against said guide plates when the last one of the cartridges in the magazine i in said throat and References Cited by the Examiner to transmit the elastic force along the entire length of said 5 elastic band to said loop for elastic contraction thereof. FOREIGN PATENTS 2. The magazine as defined in claim 1 and including on 494,842 9/ 19 Franceone side of said follower a hump positioned on one side of said mouth in cooperation with the one of said lips on BENJAMIN BORCHELT Pflmary Exammer' the opposite side thereof to displace the last one of the car- 10 FRED C, MATTERN, JR,, Examiner. 

1. A FIREARM MAGAZINE FOR STORING A PLURALITY OF CARTRIDGES IN RANDOM FASHION INCLUDING A CASE HAVING A WIDTH SEVERAL TIMES GREATER THAN THE DIAMETER OF THE CARTRIDGES, A PAIR OF UPPER SECTIONS EXTENDING INWARDLY AND UPWARDLY FROM OPPOSITE SIDES OF SAID CASE, A MOUTH FORMED BETWEEN THE FREE ENDS OF SAID UPPER SECTIONS, A GUIDE PLATE FIXED TO EACH OF SAID UPPER SECTIONS TO DEPEND VERTICALLY THEREFROM WITHIN SAID CASE ON OPPOSITE SIDES OF SAID M OUTH, A THROAT FORMED BETWEEN SAID GUIDE PLATES FOR PASSAGE OF TWO OF THE CARTRIDGES IN STAGGERED RELATIONSHIP THERETHROUGH, A LIP FORMED ON EACH OF SAID UPPER SECTIONS BETWEEN THE RELATED ONE OF SAID GUIDE PLATES AND SAID MOUTH FOR RETAINING CONTACT BY A RELATED ONE OF THE TWO STAGGERED CARTRIDGES IN SAID THROAT TO RELEASABLY HOLD THE CONTACTED CARTRIDGE IN A FEEDING POSITION AT SAID MOUTH, AN ELASTIC BAND STRETCHED AROUND THE INSIDE OF SAID CASE TO FORM AN ELASTICALLY CONTRACTABLE LOOP AROUND THE CARTRIDGES THEREIN FOR PRESSING THE CARTRIDGES THROUGH SAID THROAT TO THE FEEDING POSITION, A FOLLOWER PIVOTALLY MOUNTED AT ONE END TO SAID CASE ON ONE SIDE OF SAID THROAT FOR PIVOTAL DISPLACEMENT AGAINST SAID GUIDE PLATES TO DISPLACE THE LAST ONE OF THE CARTRIDGES IN THE MAGAZINE TO THE FEEDING POSITION AND HOLD SUCH LAST ONE OF THE CARTRIDGES THEREIN, SAID ELASTIC BAND BEING FIXED AT ONE END TO SAID FOLLOWER AND AT THE OPPOSITE END TO SAID CASE, AND ROLLERS POSITIONED IN SAID CASE FOR COOPERATION WITH SAID ELASTIC BAND TO FORM SAID CONTRACTABLE LOOP, TO PIVOT SAID FOLLOWER AGAINST SAID GUIDE PLATES WHEN THE LAST ONE OF THE CARTRIDGES IN THE MAGAZINE IS IN SAID THROAT AND TO TRANSMIT THE ELASTIC FORCE ALONG THE ENTIRE LENGTH OF SAID ELASTIC BAND TO SAID LOOP FOR ELASTIC CONTRACTION THEREOF. 